Riverchase Galleria
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Riverchase Galleria | |
 The Riverchase Galleria's center court |
|
| Mall facts and statistics | |
|---|---|
| Location | Hoover |
| Opening date | February 19, 1986 |
| Developer | Jim Wilson & Associates |
| Management | General Growth Properties |
| Owner | General Growth Properties/Jim Wilson & Associates |
| No. of stores and services | 155 [1] |
| No. of anchor tenants | 5 |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Website | riverchasegalleria.com |
Riverchase Galleria is a large super–regional shopping mall in the Birmingham suburb of Hoover. It is managed and partially owned by General Growth Properties and is Alabama's largest enclosed shopping center. Second only to the Alabama Gulf Coast beaches[citation needed], Riverchase is one of the state's most popular tourist attractions, attracting customers from the neighboring states of Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
Located at the intersection of Montgomery Highway (US Highway 31) and Interstate 459, Riverchase Galleria is contiguous with the 330-room Wynfrey Hotel and a 17-story, 285,000 square foot (26,000 m²) office building located in the mall's center court. The style of this center is modeled after the Houston Galleria, but at a smaller scale.
The word "Riverchase" is named after the subdivision on the southern end of the city of Hoover which was annexed in September of 1980.[2]
Contents |
[edit] History
"The Galleria," as it is locally known, was opened on February 19, 1986 by developer Jim Wilson & Associates. Initially 1.2 million square feet with four anchor stores, JC Penney, Parisian, Pizitz, and Rich's, in March 1987, the mall added its first Macy's store at center court; marking that company's very first location in the Birmingham market. Also in 1987 Alabama's homegrown Pizitz department stores were acquired by McRae's of Jackson, Mississippi, and subsequently renamed. In 1995 Parisian expanded their store by almost two-thirds, while in 1996 Sears and a new wing were added, making Riverchase Galleria a total 1.7 million square feet (160,000 m²) in size. The expansion made it the largest mixed-use project in the Southeast and one of the top 10 largest mixed-use projects in the United States.
In 2003, the mall began to feel the effects of department store consolidation when the Macy's anchor store closed, while the Rich's location was renamed Rich's-Macy's. The former Macy's location was sold at that time to Saks Incorporated, by then the parent of McRae's and Parisian. Saks kept the unit vacant for over a year before reopening the refurbished store in October 2004 under its Proffitt's division, giving the company three different anchors at Riverchase. On March 6, 2005 the Rich's-Macy's organization dropped the Rich's from its name and became simply Macy's. Later in 2005, Saks sold its Proffitt's division and most of the McRae's chain to Belk, and as a result Saks closed the 131,000 sq. ft. McRae's store. Belk dissolved the separate Proffitt's organization and on March 8, 2006, officially converted the chain and its Riverchase location to Belk.
In 2006, Belk acquired the Parisian stores from Saks Incorporated and plans to convert most of them to Belk by late summer 2007. This may mean that the Parisian store could close, convert to a separate Belk Men's & Home store, or replace the current Belk store (since the Parisian store has better highway visibility). As of yet, Belk has not announced definitive plans regarding their Riverchase real estate. Additionally, the former McRae's location currently sits empty as a result of a recently settled lawsuit between the Pizitz family (which had retained ownership of the store real estate after its sale in 1987) and Saks Incorporated (which inherited the lease obligations of its defunct McRae's operation). [3] This settlement freed the location for future redevelopment.
In late 2003, Jim Wilson & Associates (JW&A) sold 50% of the Galleria to General Growth Properties (GGP), which assumed management control. GGP also bought outright another JW&A property, the Mall of Louisiana, and is currently developing a new lifestyle center in Macon, Georgia with JW&A.
[edit] The Galleria Today
Currently, the Galleria has 200 stores and restaurants and is anchored by 5 department stores (J.C. Penney, Belk, Parisian, Macy's, and Sears). There are two parking decks located on the property (attached to Belk and various mall entrances) of The Galleria, giving the center some 5,000 total parking spaces.
Located around the mall on outparcels are several restaurant chains, including California Pizza Kitchen, Ted's Montana Grill, Bonefish Grill and Olive Garden. The Home Depot and FedEx Kinko's are located on other outparcels. The first Just For Feet superstore opened at the Galleria in 1987, but closed with the rest of the chain in 2004. There was also a 10-screen Regal Cinemas movie theater nearby but it was closed in 2006, after the construction of a Rave Motion Pictures at neighboring Patton Creek.
In the center of the Grand Atrium/food court, sits a full-size, authentic 19th Century Dentzel Carousel. In the past, the carousel was dismantled for part of the year, with foliage and a fountain in its place, and reassembled for the holiday season. Currently, the carousel has remained in place for several years. Occasionally, the traditional carousel animals are replaced with reindeer for the holiday season as well. The cost of rides is currently $2 per person.
On May 5, 2006, the mall opened the state's first Sephora store.
[edit] Anchor & Major Stores
- Abercrombie & Fitch (10,498 sq. ft.)
- Belk (255,000 sq. ft.)
- Express/Express Men (11,032 sq. ft.)
- Forever 21 (15,000 sq. ft.)
- Gap/Gap Kids (16,100 sq. ft.)
- JCPenney (135,163 sq. ft.)
- Macy's (220,000 sq. ft.)
- Parisian (203,500 sq. ft., future status undetermined, chain converting to Belk late summer 2007)
- Sears (150,000 sq. ft.)
[edit] Former Anchors
- Macy's (opened 1987, mall's first Macy's store, closed 2003) (255,000 sq. ft.)
- McRae's (opened 1986 as Pizitz, became McRae's 1987, closed 2005) (131,000 sq. ft.)
- Pizitz (opened 1986, became McRae's 1987, closed 2005) (131,000 sq. ft.)
- Proffitt's (opened 2004 in former Macy's, became Belk 2006) (255,000 sq. ft.)
- Rich's (opened 1986, operated as Rich's-Macy's 2003-2005, renamed Macy's 2005) (220,000 sq. ft.)
[edit] Trivia
- The Riverchase Galleria is home to the world's longest skylight at some 200 feet.
- Taylor Hicks, the 2006 winner of American Idol, worked at the Riverchase Galleria, where he dressed as an Easter Bunny. Two weeks before his final victory, Hicks returned to the Galleria for a rally in his honor in the atrium, attended by an estimated 10,000 fans.
- An easily overlooked monument is on the second level in front of the escalator. A floor tile is engraved with an inscription identifying it as the final tile installed in the mall's 2001 renovation.
- The Galleria is serviced by Exit 13B "Galleria Boulevard" from Interstate 459. The Patton Creek Shopping Center, built adjacent to the Galleria in 2003 is also serviced by this interchange.
